Loose Women: Dr Hilary discusses how to live longer
How long we live is decided by a multitude of different factors, from genetics and illnesses to lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise.
While it is of course not possible to know exactly what age you will reach, some of these factors can give us a rough idea.
With this in mind, a health expert in the US has created a 38-question online quiz that takes all these factors into consideration to then give you a predicted age of death.
Doctor Paul Savage, founder of the MDLifespan Longevity Clinic in Chicago, says the quick-to-complete quiz can provide a snapshot into a person’s overall health and wellbeing.
It asks a range of questions including a person’s height, weight, age, about their diet and exercise routine, and about how often they drink alcohol and smoke among other relevant topics.
READ MORE 97-year-old fitness expert shares ‘secret to living a healthy, youthful life’
These answers are fed into an algorithm to generate a longevity score.
Scoring below average should spur people to make changes to “boost their health and longevity”, Dr Savage told Mail Online.
The average life expectancy for men in the UK is 79, and 83 for women.
Dr Savage explained: “I designed the longevity score as a method of inspiring people to evaluate the impact of their environment, lifestyle, and the impact of their family history on their longevity.
Don’t miss…
Doctor shares top ten foods to help you live longer[EXPERT]
Woman, 76, makes 20-year life plan after simple exercise boosts health[REAL LIFE]
How to live longer: Matcha tea to boost longevity[INSIGHT]
- Advert-free experience without interruptions.
- Rocket-fast speedy loading pages.
- Exclusive & Unlimited access to all our content.
“As my grandfather says, ‘If you don’t look, then you will not see it, and if you don’t measure, then you cannot fix it’.”
Former emergency medic Dr Savage told Mail Online he has spent 25 years sifting through the latest research on longevity, and that his quiz is based on what studies show the factors that influence ageing are, such as blood pressure, weight and diet.
Quiz participants are first asked to input their sex at birth, age, weight and height.
These questions are followed by a look into how often they spend sitting every day, how many portions of fruit and vegetables they eat a day and whether they eat olive oil.
They are also quizzed on exercise habits, how well they sleep and whether they snore.
Damaging lifestyle habits are examined in a section on drinking alcohol, smoking and recreational drug use.
If the participant is aware of these they can also answer questions on their cholesterol, blood pressure and average blood sugar.
Questions about family history of medical conditions such as strokes, cancer and dementia are also asked.
The quiz then provides an estimated life expectancy for the participant.
Dr Savage stated that it is “difficult to determine” the accuracy of the results but it can help people think about their health and lifestyle and what changes they can make.
“I do want people to use this score so that they can take actions which will boost their health and their longevity,” he added.
“Many, if not most, of the risk factors which people have to their health and longevity can be mitigated by early detection, targeted prevention and intervention.”
Source: Read Full Article